The Wisconsin Book Festival began its fifth annual event in the City of Madison Wednesday.

The festival will be held through Monday, Oct. 17, and includes events such as book, short story and poetry readings, book sales and discussion forums. Alison Chaim, director of the festival, said the purpose of the event is to encourage communication amongst citizens and students who frequent the events.

"I think one of the main goals for the book festival is to get people to talk to each other," Chaim said. "Our events are organized with discussion in mind. At every reading we hold, we either set up time for discussion or allow for a question-and-answer session after the reading. We hope people who attend an event take that discussion to a coffee house or a tavern and continue to talk there."

The festival includes more than 100 events, more than 200 participants and features both nationally and internationally renowned authors, Chaim said. Local writers also participate in the festival, she added.

Because the event is a program of the Wisconsin Humanities Council, a non-profit organization, the festival itself does not charge for entry to the events. However, according to Chaim, book sales do generate revenue for book stores and accompany most events.

"We invite local area book stores to sell their books at the various locations for the events," Chaim said. "Taking home a book is the only thing that costs money. Otherwise, everything else is free."

University of Wisconsin senior Ted Koehler said he has been to the Wisconsin Book Festival's Friends of the UW-Madison Libraries Book Sale the past two years.

"I think the Book Sale is a great event," Koehler said. "When I go [to the event], I've gone to the last day of the event, where you get to fill a bag up with books."

Koehler said the sale has been crowded in the past, likely due to the inexpensive books on sale.

"The room that I went to the last two years was packed. I haven't been pushed when I've been there looking for books," Koehler said, "but I definitely recall being nudged and moved by people looking for books. I'll probably go back again this year though. You can always get something that you need, and it's worth the money, the books are really cheap."

Despite being somewhat uncomfortable at the crowded book sale, Koehler said the crowd is an encouraging sight.

"It's good to see the people of Madison excited to get their hands on these books," Koehler said. "It makes you appreciate how educated some parts of our city are."

Chaim said Madison citizens' enthusiasm for reading and learning make the city a great place to hold the Wisconsin Book Festival.

"Madison is, and has been for a long time, the highest ranked city on a per capita basis in terms of book purchases," Chaim said. "People here purchase more books than anywhere else. Madison is a wonderful host for the event."